b'SCIENCE & INNOVATIONMeet the 2022 Balint Orban and Research Forum winnersRecipients of the Balint Orban Memorial Competition and Research Forum Poster Competition awards held at the 2022 Annual Meeting in Phoenix shared more about theirWhat challenges did you face while conducting your research, winning research. Abstracts will be published in aand how did you overcome them?future issue of the Journal of Periodontology. One major challenge confronting many clinician-scientists is the David T. Wu, DMD, DMScdifficulty to find a balance between clinical responsibilities and research Harvard University, Boston, MA productivity. During my journey as a dual-degree candidate, I gradually learned to develop strategies to compartmentalize, prioritize, and focus WinnerBasic Science Award,on the most important tasks at hand. In addition, building a great team Balint Orban Memorialculture with co-residents and research collaborators contributed to a Competitionpositive experience both in the clinic and at the lab.Hydrogel Viscoelasticity ControlsUltimately, a supportive learning environment is critical for success. I am Migration and Fusion of Mesenchymalgrateful for the guidance and mentorship of my DMSc Thesis Advisor, Prof. Stem Cell Spheroids David J. Mooney, my Program Director, Dr. David M. Kim, and my DMSc Can you briefly explain the results of yourThesis Committee Chair, Dean William V. Giannobile, who enabled me to winning research? find a balance between my clinical education and my scientific pursuit. Despite advances in biomaterials and biologics, theHow will winning this award affect your work going forward?regeneration of dental, oral, and craniofacial (DOC) tissueHaving the opportunity to share our research among the finalists at the remains a challenge. Our research aims to understandBalint Orban Memorial Competition was a great honor and a dream come how mechanical properties of a biomaterial scaffold (i.e.,true. I am grateful for this once-in-a-lifetime achievement, and thankful to viscoelasticity) may direct stem cell behavior towardsthe AAP community for this award.regenerative outcomes.Our results showed that hydrogels with fast stressThis recognition encourages me to continue my journey as a clinician-relaxation can enhance the migration of mesenchymalscientist-educator. Moving forward, I aspire to create an outstanding stem cells (MSC), and the subsequent fusion oflearning environment for students, residents, and trainees, to advance the multicellular MSC spheroids. In addition, this permissivefield of biomaterials and tissue engineering applicable to periodontology, matrix can potentiate the effect of growth factors (i.e.,and to translate scientific discoveries to the clinical arena to enhance PDGF-BB). In sum, we demonstrated that biophysical andpatient care.biochemical signals play a synergistic role in tuning stemWhat advice would you give to up-and-coming periodontists?cell behavior. As young periodontists, our curiosity to explore new frontiers and our In terms of significance and clinical relevance, our studycourage to turn ideas into reality will advance our profession both clinically defined a key design parameter for bioinstructive materialsand scientifically. Together, we must be bold to envision a future of and introduced the concept mechanoregeneration toperiodontology empowered by groundbreaking innovations in precision the field of periodontology. This is the first step towardsmedicine, artificial intelligence-assisted diagnostics and treatment developing viscoelastic biomaterials-based tissueplanning, and minimally invasive surgery.engineering strategies for the regeneration of periodontal, peri-implant, and other DOC tissues. To push the boundaries of our knowledge, we must also be humble and understand the limits of our expertise. By building synergistic AAP Periospectives| 40'